Search Results for: tool of the month

Tumbler

Tool of the Month – Tumbler

  One of the useful pieces of equipment in my workshop is my tumbler.     It can be hard to get a shiny finish on small pieces and pieces made from wire, so popping them into the tumbler with some steel shot, water and a tiny bit of dish soap does the trick!   […]

Disc Cutter

Tool of the Month – Disc Cutter

I have a very lovely mum and granny, who sometimes give me cash for birthday and Christmas presents with instructions to buy myself smithing tools. I have a little wish list (of course!), and one of the items on it was a disc cutter. I use a lot of circles in my pieces, (being a […]

Tool of the Month – My Jeweller’s Bench

  A jeweller is nothing without a jeweller’s bench! As you can see, my bench is a busy place – I even tidied it a little for you here. My bench was made by my silversmithing teacher, Elmar – it’s robust, utilitarian, set up just how I need it – and I love it.   […]

Tool of the Month – Engraving Ball

The engraving ball (also known as the engraving vise) is a steel ball with a slot cut out of it, and a vise clamp across it. It is seated in a cup (in this case, a leather donut, lubricated with graphite) which enables it to be rotated 360 degrees around, and around 180 degrees side […]

Tool of the Month – Jeweller’s Stamps

When creating jewellery and tableware, precious metal is usually stamped  to mark both the chemical composition of the metal and the origin of the piece. There are many variations on this theme, based on what country the piece is from, and in which era it was made. There are thousands of stamps. Here in Australia, […]

Tool of the Month – Pump Drill

I was all set this month to write about what I was taught is called an Archimedes drill. While researching it online, I discovered that this tool is actually called a pump drill and an Archimedes drill is something different! So, no interesting information on Archimedes to be found here today. He was pretty amazing, though, […]

Tool of the Month – Jeweller’s Files

This month, I thought I’d show you my jeweller’s files. As with most smithing equipment, there are a vast array of files, and I have just a few. The largest file I have is a good old half round file, and the smaller files are barette, half round, pillar, round, three square & square needle files. […]